BMW 2 Series Active Tourer

Can this new-generation MPV win back sales from the seemingly unstoppable small SUV class? On sale Now Price from £30,265

- Dan Jones

WHILE MPVS USED to be the go-to vehicles for families, they’ve been hard hit by the rise of trendier small SUVs – a class that made up more than half of the top 10 best-sellers in the UK in January. How exactly do you tempt those families out of their high-rise wagons and back into an MPV? For BMW, the answer is the new 2 Series Active Tourer.

It won’t be easy, though, especially when you consider that it’s up against not only small SUVs such as the Ford Puma, but also traditional MPV rivals that include the Mercedes-Benz B-Class and Volkswagen Touran, both of which want a piece of the proverbial pie. How will the Active Tourer secure its slice?

Let’s start with engines. You can choose from the 218d diesel, the 220i and 223i petrols, and two plug-in hybrids (PHEVs), the 225e and 230e.

Our choice is the 168bhp 220i, because it’ll manage 47mpg and get you up to motorway speeds with plenty of pace. It’s also relatively quiet, only becoming a little raucous if you put your foot down to sprint from 0-62mph in 8.1sec. Not fast enough? The 223i will do it one second faster. If you’re a company car driver or want low running costs, you’ll want to wait until the PHEVs arrive later this year. Both can cover around 50 miles on electric power alone and are seriously quick; the 230e can sprint from 0-62mph in 5.5sec, more than a second faster than Mercedes’ equivalent B250e.